BAFTA nominees announced, Batman: Arkham City and L.A. Noire take lead
Four new categories added to UK video game awards
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) has announced its picks for the GAME British Academy Video Game Awards. The list of nominees include the usual suspects, with extra attention given to Rocksteady's Batman: Arkham City and Team Bondi's L.A. Noire, which lead the pack with eight nominations each.
Vying for the title of Best Game are other AAA contenders including The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, FIFA 12, Portal 2, and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. BAFTA has also seen fit to expands its categories to include trophies for Debut Game, Online-Browser, Online Multiplayer, and Performer – the latter of which includes deserving nods to Mark Hamill (Joker) in Batman: Arkham City, Nolan North (Nathan Drake) in Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, and Stephen Merchant (Wheatley) in Portal 2.
Place your bets on the full list below:
Best Game
Batman: Arkham City
Fifa 12
LA Noire
Portal 2
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Action
Assassin's Creed Revelations
Batman: Arkham City
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Portal 2
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Strategy
Dark Souls
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Football Manager 2012
From Dust
Ghost Recon
Shadow Wars
Total War: Shogun 2
Story
Batman: Arkham City
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
LA Noire
Portal 2
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Artistic Achievement
Batman: Arkham City
LA Noire
LitteBigPlanet 2
Rayman Origins
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Design
Batman: Arkham City
LA Noire
LittleBigPlanet 2
Portal 2
Super Mario 3D Land
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Debut Game
Bastion
Eufloria
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet
Shadow Planet
LA Noire
Monstermind
RIFT
Audio Achievement
Batman: Arkham City
Battlefield 3
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Dead Space 2
The Nightjar
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Family
Dance Central 2
Kinect Sports 2
Lego Pirates of the Caribbean
Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
LittleBigPlanet 2
Mario Kart 7
Game Innovation
Bastion
Child of Eden
From Dust
LA Noire
LittleBigPlanet 2
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Mobile and Handheld
Dead Space iOS
Magnetic Billiards: Blueprint
Peggle
Quarrel
Super Mario 3D Land
The Nightjar
Online – Browser
Gardens of Time
I Am Playr
Monstermind
Resistance 3
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure
The Sims Social
Online-Multiplayer
Assassin's Creed: Revelations
Battlefield 3
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Dark Souls
Gears of War 3
LittleBigPlanet 2
Original Music
Assassin's Creed: Revelations
Batman: Arkham City
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
LA Noire
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Performer
Aaron Stanton (Cole Phelps) – LA Noire
Mark Hamill (The Joker) – Batman: Arkham City
Nolan North (Nathan Drake) – Uncharted 3:Drake's Deception
Stephen Fry (Narrator) – LittleBigPlanet 2
Stephen Merchant (Wheatley) – Portal 2
Togo Igawa (Dipolomat, Advisor and Military General) – Total War: Shogun 2
Sports/Fitness
Dance Central 2
DiRT 3
Fl 2011
FIFA 12
Kinect Sports 2
Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2012
BAFTA Ones to Watch AwardJoust
Dreamweaver
Tick Tock Toys
The finalists for BAFTA's GAME Audience Award were posted last week, and are still open for voting. The winners from all 16 categories will be announced during the Academy's big show on Friday, March 16 in London.
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Matt Bradford wrote news and features here at GamesRadar+ until 2016. Since then he's gone on to work with the Guinness World Records, acting as writer and researcher for the annual Gamer's Edition series of books, and has worked as an editor, technical writer, and voice actor. Matt is now a freelance journalist and editor, generating copy across a multitude of industries.